On 6th May Statoil commenced a construction of Polarled Pipeline in the Norwegian Sea. It will transport natural gas from Aasta Hansteen field to Nyhamna Gas Plant in Western Norway.

Installation of this pipeline is an exceptional operation. While the length of the pipeline will elevate at about 480 kilometres, the project depth is record-breaking. Polarled will be laid at water depths reaching 1265 metres. Although pipelines located deeper already exist, it is the first time in history that pipe of 36’’ diameter is planted at this depth. What is more, the bottom of the the Norwegian Sea is an unfriendly environment for any engineering operation. With average depth of 2000 metres, the glacial seabed is a rough and irregular terrain.

This region of Norwegian Sea lacks gas transport infrastracture. The heads of Statoil are expecting that this project will open a field for similiar operations in the future. Eldar Sætre, executive vice president for mid- and downstream operations says

“Polarled will open a new region and facilitate further exploration activities and development of future discoveries in the area. This will contribute substantially to maintaining the role of the Norwegian continental shelf as a long-term, reliable gas supplier.”

It will as well demand modernisation of BP-owned Nyhamna Plant.

The project is connected with development of Aasta Hansteen field. It includes first installation of a SPAR platform on the Norwegian Continental shelf. A SPAR is a typical platform used in deep waters. It consists of a single large-diameter vertical cylinder supporting a deck which is weighted at the bottom by containers filled with dense fluid which provides stability. The deep draft design allows more wind, wave and currents resitivity. SPARs are enduringly anchored to the seabed by a spread mooring system.

The drilling of Aasta Hansteen field is scheduled to begin in first quater of 2016 and start of production is expected in third quater of 2017. The field will produce around 130 thousand BOE per day during plateau stage. Estimated recoverable volume is 47 billion standard cubic metres of gas.

New report announce that oil field near London Gatwick Airport is much richer in hydrocarbons than previously estimated.

The report comissioned by field developers – UK Oil and Gas – states that Horse Hill field just north of Britain’s second-largest airport could produce 60 mln boe per km squared. The oil was discovered 1000 metres below the surface in southern Weald Basin. By applying conventional methods it is estimated to recover 3-15% of the resources.

This could be a significant discovery but the investors are yet to decide if production proves economic value.

The main investor UKOG states that south England fields could produce up to 100 mld barrels of oil, a huge shift from 8 mld boe according to estimates from last year.

On March 17th Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Azeri President Ilham Aliyev and Georgian President Giorgi Margvelashvili gathered in Kars, Turkey to officially inaugurate works and lay foundations for the TANAP Pipeline.

The Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) is a massive 1850 kilometer project – a substantial part of Southern Gas Corridor which will connect Caspian and Middle East Regions to European recipients.

TANAP is expected to start operating from June 2018, costing 12 billion dollars. It will deliver shipments from giant Shah Deniz offshore gas field in Azerbaijan to Turkish western border. The initial capacity of the pipeline is 16 BCM per year. Turkey will buy 6 BCM and the rest will continue on to Europe via Trans-Adriatic Pipeline from 2020. By 2023 TANAP capacity will rise to 23 BCM per year and by 2026 to 31 BCM per year.

The project is of strategic importance for entire region. “TANAP has a special importance because of its route and its goal and is not an alternative project to others and there is not an alternative to it. TANAP will link Europe with Caspian by the help of Southern Gas Corridor,” said Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. “We plan to establish Turkey as the energy distribution hub of the region.”
It will as well introduce Azerbaijan to European markets.

Southern Gas Corridor is a vital part of European Energy Strategy. In the rear of abandoning South Stream Project by Russian officials, EU continue to seek transport alternatives other than Ukraine – which is occupied by conflict. TANAP will secure continous gas imports to Central and Southern Europe and will add a milestone to decreasing European fuel dependency on Russia. “We are ready to support and help to realise the TANAP project” said Maroš Šefčovič, the European Commission’s Vice President in charge of the Energy Union, present at the ceremony in Kars.

Moreover, last November, Turkey and Turkmenistan officials signed an agreement to attach Turkmen gas to TANAP. Citing U.S. Energy Information Administration, Turkmenistan is the sixth largest natural gas reserve holder in the world but it is lacking sufficient pipeline infrastructure to export greater volumes of hydrocarbons. To join TANAP, it would require Turkmenistan to construct pipeline across the Caspian Sea. This initiative is opposed by Russia, which expresses ecological concern.

In the agreement recently signed, Turkey’s national pipeline operator BOTAŞ will take a 30% stake in TANAP, while SOCAR holds 58% and BP 12%.

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On 27th November international market noted shockingly low price of Brent Crude Oil. Dropping down to approximately 72 USD per barrel – it is the minimal price in nearly four years time and is expected to keep sinking.

The main reason of this drop was gathering of OPEC ministers a day earlier. OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) is an international economic cartel with a mission to coordinate and unify petroleum policies in order to secure a steady income to the member states. The organization is formed of 12 countries with the biggest oil producers like Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, United Arab Emirates and Kuwait. On the meeting in Vienna, member countries did not reach consensus after a heating debate in regard to falling oil prices. The biggest influence hold a Persian Gulf states with Saudi Arabia’s oil minister arguing against cutting down on production to prop up oil prices as was earlier presumed. This move is an unexpected shift in strategy and might be a sign of OPEC losing leverage. Moreover, poorer countries of organization leave Vienna thoroughly dissatisfied as they were hoping for cuts to balance their budgets.

The direct consequence of the agreement is OPEC commencing a market share combat against United States shale producers. The cartel aims to undermine profitability of expensive shale extraction procedures and eliminate North American companies from business. This would naturally boost oil prices while preserving all of the OPEC shares. However many experts utterly doubt in a point of clashing with US claiming it would take many months to slow down a shale boom.

The gathering is viewed as the most important cartel meeting since financial crysis.